I met Lata ji for the first time during the making my debut film Sapno Ka Saudagar (1968). The song ‘Seekha Nahin Sabak Tune Pyar Ka’ was picturised on me and Raj Kapoor. It is a very cute song. My producer, B. Ananthaswami, took me for the recording and introduced me to Lata ji. I was absolutely thrilled to meet the legend. She had the appearance of a goddess—clad in a white sari, with her long, lovely hair. She was beautiful. I was just 16 years old then. She sang the song in one take and the whole thing was done. When we met, she was very sweet and nice; she was happy to see a newcomer.
Both of us did not know then about the many films we would go on to have in common and the countless songs she would sing for me. But, I hardly ever met her. The actors only have the dialogues to speak or songs to mouth in front of the camera. But I am sure she would have asked the director: “Yeh kispe picturise kiya ja raha hai? (Who is this being picturised on?)”
Often, I would see her perform at award functions. A few years ago, she was honoured by Yash Chopra. He had called all the heroines who had worked with her over the years. Some came, some did not, but I was there. And I could see she really wanted to talk to me properly. But, all the artists were crowding around, taking pictures with her, and we barely managed to talk that day.
Later, we connected on WhatsApp. I had invited her for the wedding of both my daughters, Esha and Ahana. She could not attend; but she would send such lovely gifts. And then she would keep sending me the most beautiful saris. “You wear this. It will look lovely on you,” she would write to me. Mostly, they would be in rose pink. These saris are my prized possessions.
Recently, I also took to singing. I have sung a lot of bhajans and other devotional songs like the ‘Durga Saptha Sloki’ and the ‘Mahalakshmi Ashtakam’ in the last five years. When my film Meera (1979) was in the works, I wanted Lata ji to lend her timeless voice to the bhajans in the film. But it did not happen. I was so disappointed.
So, when I started singing bhajans, I would often send the clips to Lata ji on WhatsApp. “Tell me what do you think?” I would ask her. She would message back saying “Bahut sundar gaya hai aapne, bahut sundar hai (You have sung very beautifully, it is very beautiful)”.
Sometimes, she would send across so many pictures of mine, or of Dharam ji and I together. I do not know where she dug them out from. And she would make her own versions of these pictures, edit them with her own flourishes. On WhatsApp you can do a lot of these things, right? She was an expert at that! She would edit these pictures and ask me, “Tell me what you think?” And I would go, “Bahut sundar hai”. We had the sweetest communication between us.
I recently performed in a ballet called Yashodha Krishna, which threw up several stunning images. I had sent some of them to Lata ji because she could not come for the show. She was not keeping well. Unsurprisingly, she did all sorts of things with the photos. She even got them printed on coffee mugs!
Just three months ago, she sent me so many songs to hear. Her own songs. Songs which were recorded but never used in films. Hindi songs, Marathi songs. She was so keen on sharing them with me. The last message I sent her was on January 28, when she was in the hospital. “I heard you are not well, didi, I hope you are alright. Please get well soon. I am praying for you,” I wrote. There was no response.
Her passing is a big loss for the country, for the whole world. No one had this kind of a unique voice. Everybody has to go one day. But when a legend goes, you do not know if they have really gone. She was so sweet and showed so much love from a distance. She was from a culture-bound family and she maintained that refinement till the end.
She was very active on Twitter as well, where she would wish people happy birthdays and mourn the passing of eminent artists. Her wishes and condolences would come via WhatsApp, too. She was so well connected and in touch with the world around her, and so fond of cricket matches. But she did all this with such dignity. One has to learn that from her.
She was a boon given by Ma Saraswati. Her death coincided with the onset of Basant Panchami when we worship the revered goddess. She was the goddess that I recognised for the first time.
As told to Sneha Bhura